VRMMORPG: The Other World Online

Cheng Xiu moved at a high speed towards the man in blue.

San Zhe stumbled back in fear.

Cheng Xiu raised her sword to impale him.

San Zhe stopped her attack with the handle of his trident.

"Sister Xiu!" San Zhe called, hoping it would be enough for her to snap out of the trans that she fell into.

Cheng Xiu's glowing red eyes started to gain a veiny texture as she forced her sword to push against San Zhe's trident.

San Zhe used this momentum to kick her away from him.

If Cheng Xiu was still of clear mind she would have seen this obvious flaw in her posture and corrected it. Unfortunately, Cheng Xiu was far too in the witch's control to see the faults in herself.

Cheng Xiu flew away from him at the kick and got to his feet. He looked at Cheng Xiu who looked like she was drunk if it was not for the red glowing eyes, and the felt fear grip his heart.

The red and white clad Cultivator rose to her feet and dashed towards San Zhe again.

San Zhe frowned and used the trident to attack Cheng Xiu's vital, though his jabs weren't that powerful.

Cheng Xiu did not dodge. Instead, she used the momentum to slash at San Zhe.

The blue-robed man ducked away from the attack and kicked Cheng Xiu away.

Her sword cut San Zhe across the sholder.

He huffed as the Qi in his body circulated at high speeds. Even though Cheng Xiu was at a lower level, her body was more used to fighting with other players, unlike him, who was used to exploring and learning about the world of the game than raising his own combat efficiency.

He hadn't realised it before, but now, as he fought Cheng Xiu, San Zhe was aware of the difference between those who kept improving, those who did not.

San Zhe never cared about the combat side as much for one reason: He was a Qiless. The future of a Qiless was bleak in comparison to their Blessed parts because they could hours into the game unlike the Qiless.

As his mother always said: VR for Qiless was to experience things briefly. VR for the Blessed was a longer reality.

But as he resisted the jabs and thrusts from Cheng Xiu, he realised his thinking was too weak. Cheng Xiu at this time, did not show the intelligence and finesse of a Genius. What he was fighting was a Qiless person with no control over herself, and yet, he couldn't hold her back as much as he wanted to.

San Zhe realised…he had to improve. Not just because it is the only way to protect himself in the game, but it was the only way that he would not be abandoned by Cheng Xiu when she had even more powerful friends than him. If he wasn't useful, he would become a burden. A burden that coud be used as a weakness. They way that the NPCs did, they that the Experts did. Cheng Xiu might not abandon him, but in the end that would become her biggest weakness.

San Zhe was in a distracted state of mind at that moment, and Cheng Xiu's blade came for his neck.

San Zhe squeezed his eyes shut in fear.

Ting!

He heard metal hitting metal.

San Zhe blinked his eyes open to realise that Cheng Xiu's eyes were not as red as before.

"Fight!" she grunted out, saliva dripping from her chin.

San Zhe wrinkled his nose. "Sister Xiu, are you okay?"

"Fight!" Cheng Xiu screamed as she brought the sword in her hand down again.

San Zhe instinctively rolled away, and ended up rolling down the stairs.

He laid there, blinking at the dungeon ceiling. Did she actually break out of the Witch's spell?

San Zhe's instinct flaired and he rolled away.

Cheng Xiu's sword hit the ground he was lying on a second ago, sending sparks flying.

Cheng Xiu's eyes were a deep red again, and the blue veins that protruded out of her eyes before even more pronounced.

San Zhe shivered. It must have taken a lot from Cheng Xiu for her to communicate that single word with him.

The Heart Detachment was a special spell that would force Cheng Xiu to fight things in the way that she did not want to fight.

If a coward liked to hide, then the spell will force him to be brave. If a warrior liked to be up front, the spell would force then to be sneaky. It forced the victim to fight in a way that they were not familiar with.

Considering the way that Cheng Xiu was fighting him at the moment, he would know what Cheng Xiu's usual fight style was even if he did not know her.

Cheng Xiu usually only fought in ways that would leave her with the greatest advantages, with minimum personal damage if she could help it. Her fighting style was to rely to logic and planning.

But right at that moment, Cheng Xiu's fighting style was chaotic and unorganized.

There was no way that Cheng Xiu would win in this kind of situation that had her abandoning her logic and her instincts.

And San Zhe knew that to break away from the curse of the witch, Cheng Xiu had to let herself be manipulated, let herself be used.

No one wanted to be in that position though.

San Zhe frowned as he realised that Yaksha was not there and he did not seem to be doing anything.

Why was that?

Was it because Cheng Xiu said she did not want him to help her unless she was in a life and death situation?

Was she not in such a situation though?

No. She wasn't.

Her present opponent was San Zhe who did not have the intent, nor the means to actually hurt her.

In some ways, the one in danger was San Zhe.

Then again, Cheng Xiu seemed to be able to control herself when she was really about to kill him.

Even though it had only happened only once, it was obvious it could happen again.

Even San Zhe was not in much of a danger.

Almost like he had an epiphany, San Zhe started to counter her attacks better.

The reason was simple. Cheng Xiu would not actually kill him.

Cheng Xiu's movements were fast and smooth, while San Zhe's were rusty, but he was still able to block Controlled Cheng Xiu's attacks.

The area echoed with the clashing of metal as the sword and the trident met again and again.

San Zhe's movements started to even out.

San Zhe's eyes widened as he realised that not only was his movements smoother, Cheng Xiu's eyes only had a dull red tinge to it.

She had actually broken the spell?

He started to observe her to conform his theory.

San Zhe then understood something else.

Cheng Xiu was correcting the mistakes that he made as the fought. She was teaching him at a time like this.

How did this happen? How was she able to get out of the spell? Was it Yaksha? No. The expert was notorious for keeping his promise.

San Zhe concluded that Cheng Xiu must have figured out how to break away from the spell on her own. How she could have managed that was a big question to him though. How was she able to resist the Witch's snare?

As the two figures fought with each other on the landing of the stairs that would lead to the dungeons, a figure in black stood at the top of the stairs watching the proceedings going on below.

A woman in a green dress sighed as she leaned against the wall, above her head was the green crystal of NPCs.

"I can't believe she actually broke through," the woman said with a sigh. "A powerful mind, Lord Yaksha."

Yaksha looked at the woman briefly.

"But is that going to be enough?" the woman asked with a small chuckle. "To resist the King, she needs more than a powerful mind. She need the Ghost King himself."

Yaksha shook his head. "There is no need. She will be able to handle a rat and his vermin."

The woman glared. "Don't think I haven't seen the investment she is to you, Lord Yaksha. There is no way that a nobody would gain your attention the way that the girl has done. She must have a potential. Tell me…what is her ranking?"

Yaksha smiled behind the mask. "I don't know."

"What is her faction?"

"Human."

The woman frowned. "You know that is not what I am asking."

"Neutral," Yaksha said after a pause.

The woman smiled. "Then things would be easier."

"If you say so."

The woman turned into a rat and went down the stairs.

Yaksha stayed where he was, watching the red and blue twirle as Cheng Xiu lead San Zhe to his perfect form.